Friday, April 27, 2007

PlayStation Creator Resigns As Chief of Sony Unit - WSJ.com

More Sony details

While many game executives say Mr. Kutaragi's ambitious vision with PlayStation 3 still could pay off, the console is in an unexpectedly weak position compared with less expensive systems from Microsoft Corp. and Nintendo Co. In March, U.S. retailers sold 259,000 Nintendo Wii consoles, 199,000 Microsoft Xbox 360s and 130,000 PlayStation 3s, according to NPD Group Inc.

Instead of being the hoped-for cornerstone of a recovery for Sony, videogame-related losses for Sony's year ended in March are expected to amount to $2 billion, or double original forecasts. That is expected to drag down the company's overall performance despite improvements in other businesses, such as televisions. Sony will report full-year earnings next month.